Progym 1: Explain Interest

Welcome to the SPE 111 blog. Your first progym will require you share something you are interested in. The goal is to enable the rest of the class to get to know you better without simply saying the usual laundry list of name, major, hometown, etc.

As with all speeches (except for the formal where it is required) you may provide a visual if you wish. Also, you must include some sort of attribution, where did you get the ideas you are talking about?

Looking for something to say? Consider some of the following directions to take:

• Tell a story you like to tell and explain what it says about you.
• Explain what you like about your favorite hobby.
• What is something you know a lot about that isn’t your major?
• What books, movies, or music do you love? What do you love about them?
• What is something about you people may not expect when they first meet you?
• What career do you intend to go into? What do you like about that career?
• What interesting places have you traveled or lived? What did you like about those places?

Whatever direction you take you will need 2-4 main points, and you will need to fill 2-4 minutes. Again, don’t just laundry list. Focus—provide a theme to hold it all together.

Challenge: 2-4 Main Points

Because it is the first speech, your 2-4 main points, transitions, and speaking outline will all be evaluated as part of the challenge. In the future they be part of the “basics.”

Short Statement 1: Introduction

Along with your progym you will introduce another student. Your goal is to “warm up” the audience. You will note on 204-5 that one of the things you must do is preview the speaker’s topic. Since the other student may not be decided on their topic, yet, I will give you about ten minutes at the start of next class to incorporate what they decided upon. Still, you might want to exchange emails or phone numbers if you want more time.

There is no time requirement for the introduction. Be brief but cover enough. Beyond the usual requirements of a short statement (thesis, main points, and because-clauses), I will be evaluating your introduction on how well you touched on the different parts (background/qualifications, preview, and welcome) to get the audience interested while still not overshadowing the student presenting.

Due: Wed 18 Jan

The image above is of Ali, from my lecture on introductions. The image is taken from a biography on Full Issue, http://www.fullissue.com.